


The Date Itself (A continuation of Alternatively This by MissKatieLeigh)

by AliciaSinCiudad



Series: Tumblr-prompt stand-alones [10]
Category: Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016)
Genre: AU: Academia, AU: Earth, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-24
Updated: 2018-08-11
Packaged: 2019-01-04 23:24:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,002
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12178527
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AliciaSinCiudad/pseuds/AliciaSinCiudad
Summary: MissKatieLeigh wrote a story for me based on this prompt:Obviously I am asking for sniperpilot because obviously. AU: they are both teachers (whatever age students), one of them is a first-year teacher at this school and the other is a veteran teacher. First day of school.I asked for a prompt back, and she asked for the date they go on after her story.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [misskatieleigh](https://archiveofourown.org/users/misskatieleigh/gifts).
  * Inspired by [Alternatively, this](https://archiveofourown.org/works/12101037) by [misskatieleigh](https://archiveofourown.org/users/misskatieleigh/pseuds/misskatieleigh). 



 

 

 

 

[First read [Chapter 5](http://archiveofourown.org/works/12101037/chapters/27434604) of _Alternatively, This_ by MissKatieLeigh. This is a continuation of that story.]

 

 

Professor Andor came to an abrupt stop at the bottom of a hill, and Bodhi came all too close to crashing into his bike.

“I don’t suppose you’ve heard of using hand signals?” Bodhi complained, panting a little, as he pulled up beside the his colleague and skidded to a stop.

He had been led to believe that this town was incredibly flat, but it appeared to have saved all its hills for this particular area. Maybe the glaciers that had flattened everything else hadn’t bothered to go off campus? He grinned, imagining glaciers decked out in overpriced college-themed gear, texting each other and drinking cheap vodka. Maybe the glaciers themselves had been made of cheap vodka. But didn’t alcohol have a much lower freezing point than water?

Bodhi blinked, suddenly realizing that the other professor had said something, which he’d missed in his daydreaming. “Sorry, what was that?” he asked, a bit embarrassed.

Professor Andor laughed. He had a nice laugh. He wasn’t the slightest bit out of breath, and Bodhi wasn’t sure whether to feel impressed or resentful. He settled on both. “I said, I _did_ use a hand signal,” the professor repeated. “The left hand, down.” He demonstrated. “It means _stop_.”

“Oh. I thought you were just stretching your wrist.” Bodhi swung his leg over his bike, and walked it over to a bus stop to lock it up. “I suppose I’ll have to learn new cycling signals, as well as riding on the wrong side of the road.”

“Where are you from, anyway?” Andor asked, carefully looping his U-Lock through the body and front wheel of his bike as he locked it to a No Parking sign. “If that’s not a rude question.”

“England,” Bodhi replied. “You?”

“Mexico. We drive on the correct side of the road there, by the way. Unlike you British savages.”

“Excuse me?” Bodhi narrowed his eyes in mock offense.

Andor smirked. “There’s a reason it’s called the _right_ side of the road.”

“That’s… probably not even true in Spanish.”

“Hmm.” Andor raised his eyebrows. “I suppose you’ll just have to learn Spanish, to find out.” He cocked his head toward an improbably yellow building. “Come on, it’s my treat.”

“No, no,” Bodhi insisted, following him inside. “I’m the one who invited you to coffee.”

“Yes, but it’s your first day. And you gave me that tip about the whiteboard markers.”

Bodhi glanced at the display case of pastries and sandwiches. And at their prices. He sucked in a slow breath. “Alright, you can pay this time. Um, just a plain coffee for me.”

“Come on, don’t be shy,” Andor insisted. “I’m the one who chose this place. Besides, I remember what it’s like the first month, paying for the rent and deposit and everything while waiting for the first paycheck.” He gave a brief smile to the cashier. “Good afternoon.”

“Hey,” the cashier replied, almost making eye contact.

“An iced coffee for me, and…” He turned to Bodhi.

“Um, same for me.” Bodhi was sure he’d regret drinking caffeine this late in the day, but he couldn’t bring himself to order a $4 hibiscus tea, no matter how appetizing it looked. He noticed Andor following his gaze.

“The hibiscus tea is good, if you like sweet things,” he mentioned casually. “Why don’t you try it? Think of it as a First Day of School treat.” Bodhi hesitated, and Andor turned back to the cashier. “Only one iced coffee, and one hibiscus.”

“Ok.” The cashier blinked, bored.

Andor turned back to Bodhi, looking serious. “Get something to eat, too. You look like you could use it.”

Bodhi raised an eyebrow. Did he look like a charity case? Or was this guy just that bad at flirting?

Andor frowned. “Sorry, that was rude, wasn’t it? I don’t mean you’re skinny or anything. You look fine. I mean, er, like I said, it’s your first month here, and the town is pretty expensive, and…”

“It’s fine,” Bodhi interrupted. “Really, I’m not hungry.” His stomach growled. Traitor.

“Two pasties,” Andor told the cashier. “One chicken and one vegetable.” The cashier put two pasties in a bag and handed them to Andor. He paid with cash, dropping the change and an extra dollar into the tip jar.

“Thanks,” the cashier muttered with a slight nod. “Bye.”

“Have a good one,” Andor replied, mirroring the nod and the complete lack of emotion.

“Right, um, have a great day,” Bodhi added, taking the two drinks and following him outside. As soon as the door closed behind him, he let out a laugh. “What just happened in there? I thought Americans were supposed to be friendly to the point of being annoying.”

“Yeah, that’s why I like this place,” Andor said, his mouth quirking up slightly, as he sat at the lone metal table. “Nobody tries to chat with me. Also, no students.”

“I can see why, with these prices. I mean, really, four dollars for a ding dong? I don’t even know what a ding dong is, but it doesn’t seem worth four dollars.”

“It’s because it’s vegan. And organic. And also – no students.”

“I suppose we’re paying for customer service as well.”

“And the décor.” Andor nodded his head toward the strange metal-wire sculptures of a giant lizard and a mermaid with severe scoliosis.

Bodhi laughed. “Did you build those for your robotics class?”

Andor shook his head, his smirk spreading into an actual grin. “Actually, I haven’t built a robot from scratch for a long time. Although I may have… repurposed one from my old job.”

“Oh?”

Andor shrugged nonchalantly. “I’ll tell you about that later. Anyway. Are you vegetarian?”

Bodhi shook his head.

“Good.” Andor took a pasty out of the paper bag. “Try the chicken pasty. Apparently, they’re a kind of local delicacy.”

“As local as I am,” Bodhi laughed. “They’re from Cornwall.” He took a bite.

“Oh. Sorry.”

Bodhi shrugged. “It’s alright. I don’t expect you to be an expert of British cuisine.”

“You could teach me?”

Bodhi snorted, shaking his head. “You’re _really_ bad at flirting, did you know that?” Cassian frowned, his eyes cast downward. Bodhi took pity on him and changed the subject. “So. Spanish and Robotics. That’s an odd combination.”

Cassian smiled ruefully. “I actually just applied for the Robotics position, but they didn’t want to hire me part-time. They told me I’d get the job if I taught a Spanish class as well.” He took a sip of his coffee. “Anyway, how was your first day?”

“Not bad.” Bodhi took a sip of the hibiscus tea. Heaven. “I was pleasantly surprised that a couple of students actually asked questions during class. One even asked about tutoring.” Another sip. Still heaven. Maybe even worth four dollars. “How about you? How was your first day?”

“It was mostly alright. Until I came back to the classroom for my jacket, and found that message on the whiteboard.”

“It could have been worse,” Bodhi pointed out. “They could have written something cruel.”

“I guess so. But I want them to take me seriously. I’m not trying to be Professor Hottie.”

Bodhi snickered. “Can you imagine actually being named Professor Hottie? It would be rough, trying to get anyone’s respect.”

Andor snorted inelegantly. “It’s bad enough being named Andor. I get a lot of and/or jokes.”

Bodhi raised an eyebrow. “That’s surprisingly clever, actually. So what should _I_ call you? Andor? Cassian? Professor Hottie?”

“Cassian’s fine.” He blushed. “Can I call you Bodhi?”

Bodhi laughed. “You’ve just bought me an eight-dollar pasty, I think you can call me whatever you’d like.”

“Really, it’s not a big deal.” Cassian pushed the paper bag over to Bodhi. “Here, take the other one, too. You can have it for lunch tomorrow.”

“You really _do_ see me as a charity case, don’t you?”

Cassian’s eyes widened, and he shook his head vehemently. “No, really! I just remember how hungry I always was when I first move here, with no money, didn’t know anyone. I’m sure you’ll do the same thing next year for another new professor.” He paused, and added shyly, “But not as a date, I hope.”

“Of course not,” Bodhi said seriously. “By that time, I’ll be a married man. Professor Hottie-Rook. Or Rook-Hottie. Which sounds better?”

Cassian cleared his throat, blushing again. It was a good look on him. “So, math?”

Bodhi shrugged. “Like you, not my first choice. I’d rather be teaching aerospace engineering, but this was the only opening I found. I’m hoping to work my way up, though.”

Cassian nodded. “Yeah, I’m hoping to get out of Spanish, just do Robotics and Coding one of these days.” He sighed. “Today, a student complained to me because I don’t use more English. She said that hearing just Spanish for an hour is too hard. She thinks one hour, three times a week, is difficult? Try moving to another country, where you have to hear a foreign language all day long, with an unreasonable number of phrasal verbs…” He shook his head, scowling. “Suddenly, language immersion is real to her? I’ve been dealing with this shit since I was six years old!”

“Six years old?” Bodhi was taken aback.

“Well, twenty-six,” Cassian amended. “Still. English is much harder to learn than Spanish.”

“Twenty-six…” Bodhi repeated thoughtfully. “Which was how many years ago?”

“Um, not many? Only a few. How old are _you_ , then?”

“Twenty-seven. I had you pegged as a bit older, though. Mid-thirties. You look rather serious for someone in their twenties.”

“I’m thirty-five,” Cassian admitted. “I hope that’s not a problem?”

“Not at all. I like older men.” Bodhi grinned with a sudden memory. “I had this supervisor when I was doing my PhD, a certain Doctor Erso… Do you know the expression _Silver Fox_?”

“Hey, I’m not silver yet!” Cassian protested.

“I’m just teasing. But no, your age doesn’t bother me. We’re old enough that a few years shouldn’t made that much difference. But it _will_ bother me if you always insist on paying.”

“Alright,” Cassian assented. “Next time you can treat me. As soon as you get your first paycheck.”

“You mean you don’t want to go on another date for two weeks?” Bodhi pouted, and was immensely satisfied at Cassian’s immediate frown.

“Crap. Ok, why don’t we go somewhere free next time? Like, a walk by the river?”

“This town has a river?”

“It’s decided.” Cassian was all business. “Our next date, we’ll go for a walk by the river. I know a good park on a bit East from campus. Quiet, clean –”

“And no students?”

“Exactly,” Cassian smiled, a glint in his eyes. “And no students.”

“Alright, then, I’m in. Saturday morning?” Bodhi hoped it didn’t seem too desperate, offering a date less than a week away.

Cassian didn’t seem to mind. “Perfect. I’ll meet you in the central bus depot, a little before 9 AM.”

“You don’t believe in sleeping in, do you?” Bodhi wondered what he’d just signed up for.

Cassian gave Bodhi a withering look. “That _is_ sleeping in. Or do you prefer 9:30?”

“I don’t suppose I can claim jet-lag?” Bodhi asked half-heartedly.

“By Saturday, I’m sure you’ll be over it.” The all-business tone had returned. Then Cassian softened. A little. “I can bring coffee if you’d like. And a late breakfast.”

Bodhi chose not to comment on the word _late._ “Still trying to feed me?” he asked.

Cassian rolled his eyes. “No breakfast, then. What do you say? Is it a date?”

Bodhi smiled. He definitely wasn’t going to protest that word either. “Yes. It’s a date.”

Cassian mirrored his smile, and a bit of the nervous tension seemed to ease from his shoulders. “Good. Looking forward to it. Now tell me, how did you come to be working in the United States?”

“It’s a bit of a complicated story, but I suppose we have time.” Bodhi took another sip of his overpriced hibiscus tea. “A long, long time ago…”


	2. Date the Second

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A very happy belated birthday to MissKatieLeigh! ♥

It was 9:27 when Bodhi made it to the central bus depot. To be fair, he’d _tried_ to be early, but he’d learned the hard way that the _central_ bus depot and the _central campus_ bus depot were entirely different things. It was only by sheer luck that he’d managed to catch a bus from one to the other in time.

As his bus pulled up to the _central_ depot, Bodhi noticed Cassian leaning none-too-casually against a concrete pillar, dressed in long pants and a brown jacket that seemed a bit heavy for the mild autumn weather. He also wore a large khaki rucksack, and Bodhi wondered what on Earth he’d brought for a simple walk. Probably multiple water bottles, some trail mix, and an emergency flair in case they got lost. Not that Cassian would ever get lost.

Cassian practically jumped on Bodhi the moment he got off the bus.

“There you are! I was afraid you’d forgotten!”

“I’m not late, am I?” It was far too early in the morning to deal with this kind of low key panic.

“The bus leaves in less than three minutes! Come on, let’s go!”

Cassian took Bodhi by the arm and practically dragged him to another bus. Bodhi had to admit, he didn’t exactly mind the physical contact. He let Cassian lead him onto another bus, showed his university ID card for free entry, and plopped down on a seat near the back. Cassian settled next to him, and Bodhi leaned his head against Cassian’s chest, closing his eyes and trying not to get lost in that heartbeat. He settled himself in a little more comfortably… and found himself being shook rudely awake.

“Are we there yet?” he asked, blinking blearily.

“We just left the depot,” Cassian replied witheringly. Then he frowned, chagrined. “Sorry. Are you really that tired? I know the first week can be rough.”

“It’s fine,” Bodhi yawned. “Just wish I’d had the time to grab coffee.”

“Here.” Cassian opened up his rucksack and pulled out two thermoses. “Take one. I hope you like your coffee sweet.”

Bodhi rolled his eyes, taking the grey one with an odd gear-like symbol. “I thought you’d agreed to stop trying to feed me all the time.”

“I only said I wouldn’t bring _breakfast_ ,” Cassian corrected. “Coffee isn’t breakfast. It’s a necessity.” He shamelessly brought out a paper bag. “And the bagel isn’t breakfast either. It’s a snack.”

Bodhi snorted. “Alright, I’ll take it, as long as it didn’t cost you eight dollars, like those Cornish pasties.”

Cassian smirked, satisfied. He tipped the bag in Bodhi’s direction, and Bodhi reached in, closing his hand around a deliciously warm bagel covered in sesame seeds. He closed his eyes and brought it to his face, inhaling its bready scent for a moment before taking a bite. The crunch of toasted sesame seeds contrasted beautifully with the soft doughiness of the bagel and the melting cream cheese. This was worth waking up for.

Bodhi opened his eyes, and saw Cassian staring at him with a soft expression, full of open affection. He had the decency to look embarrassed when he was caught, but he couldn’t hide his fondness. “Sorry,” he muttered with a shy smile. “You just looked so happy.”

“It’s a really good bagel,” Bodhi said with a shrug. He took another bite, and tried not to look too blissed out this time. He failed miserably. _Sooo good…_ He sighed, humming with satisfaction.

Cassian swallowed. “You look really cute, you know. I’d really like to kiss you.”

“After the bagel,” Bodhi insisted. “Want to eat it while it’s still warm.”

“This is what I get for feeding you,” Cassian muttered with mock annoyance.

Bodhi shrugged again, and offered Cassian a bite. His chest definitely didn’t tighten with the feeling of Cassian’s breath warm on his hand, and his own breath definitely didn’t stutter in anticipation as those lips came _almost_ but not quite close enough to kiss his fingers. The warmth in his chest was 100% the result of the delicious bagel he was eating. And the coffee. Which he hadn’t actually drunk yet. But still.

“Mmm,” Cassian murmured. “It _is_ a good bagel.” He licked a few stray sesames from his lips.

“You’re being entirely unfair,” Bodhi grumbled, taking another bite. Unfortunately, it was entirely impossible even to feign anger while eating something so delicious. Despite interspersing bites with sips of sweet, strong coffee, the bagel was gone within minutes. Before Bodhi could begin to mourn its absence, Cassian crumpled the now-empty paper bag and shoved it back into his rucksack. He smiles slyly.

“You said after the bagel, right?” His breath smelled of coffee and bagel and minty toothpaste, a combination which Bodhi would never have classified as particularly attractive until that very moment. He leaned in closer.

“Professor Andor?”

Cassian flinched, and immediately shifted into Professional Academic Mode. He cleared his throat. “Yes?” he asked, turning around.

“Sorry, hope I wasn’t interrupting anything.” The student didn’t sound sorry at all. He was decked out in university-themed clothing: track pants advertising the football team, a t-shirt declaring violent intentions toward the rival school, and a baseball cap in the school colours with the Greek letters Iota Mu Pi.

“Not at all,” Cassian replied evenly.

So much for staying under the radar. Bodhi wondered if he could open the window far enough to throw himself out of it. They weren’t going _that_ fast, so he’d probably be fine as long as he hit the ground rolling.

“Good.” The student, almost certainly named Chad, took a seat opposite them, spreading his legs enough to bump into a female student in the next seat. He ignored her indignant glare. “We need to talk about my grade.”

“It’s the first week of classes, Mr. Palpatine. The only assignment I’ve marked is the pre-test, and it doesn’t go into your final grade.

“I meant my grade from last semester.”

“You mean from winter semester? Four months ago?” Cassian tensed, and Bodhi put a hand on his knee to calm him. Probably-Chad smirked, and Bodhi removed his hand.

“Yeah, that one. I had you for Spanish 102, and you gave me a C minus.”

Cassian waited impatiently for the boy to continue.

“My dad doesn’t like it when I get C’s,” he added.

“Would you like for me to suggest a tutor?” Cassian asked, raising an eyebrow.

Almost-Certainly-Chad laughed. “No, Prof, I don’t need a tutor. I was hoping you’d just change my grade.”

“I see.” Cassian nodded. “Well, that is your prerogative, young man. You may hope for whatever you wish. Many things, after all, _can_ be built on hope. Education, however, takes hard work.” And with that, he turned his back on the boy, and took a sip of coffee.

Bodhi glanced over Cassian’s shoulder. Absolutely-One-Hundred-Percent-Definitely-Chad knitted his eyebrows and glared. When he saw that he wasn’t going to get anything more out of his professor, he reached over the girl beside him and pulled the cord to request a stop. Before he got off, he leaned over Cassian and growled, “My father will hear about this.”

Cassian sighed as the doors closed after the boy. “Sorry about that. He’s the son of the university president. Not exactly my favourite student.”

“Ah.” Bodhi nodded. “I thought his last name sounded familiar.”

Cassian shook his head ruefully. “I hope you never have the bad luck of teaching Chad Palpatine.”

Bodhi started. “I _knew_ he had to be named Chad!”

Cassian nodded solemnly. “Perhaps his parents doomed him to a terrible personality when they named him. Alas, poor Chad. He truly believes that the world is stacked against him.”

Bodhi echoed his solemn tone. “He’s not wrong, you know. The world _is_ stacked against rich white cis-males, particularly those in fraternities. What with women reclaiming their bodily autonomy and all. Not to mention balancing the minimum class load with regular beer pong training. It’s a very confusing time for them.”

“You understand their struggles well,” Cassian said sagely.

“I suppose I do.” Bodhi grinned slyly before dropping the bombshell. “After all, I _did_ used to belong to a fraternity.”

“No.”

Bodhi enjoyed Cassian’s look of utter shock for a full five seconds before clarifying. “Alright, it wasn’t so much a fraternity as an engineering society. And I only joined it for the connections, to help me get a job after graduation.”

“What was it like?” Cassian asked

Bodhi made a face. “Too much toxic masculinity for my taste. For example, they were officially co-ed, to align with the university’s rules, but for some reason, they only ever had about two female members at a time. And somehow, they never managed to get elected as head of the society. Homophobic jokes ran rampant, so I obviously stayed in the closet. And they made me cut my hair short – apparently, men with ponytails didn’t fit into their image.”

“Is that why you wear it so long now?”

Bodhi nodded. “Anyway, I tried putting up with it for a while, figuring it would be worth the pay off after I finished school. But when I realized they’d been stealing semi-precious stones from the geology department, my conscience got the best of me, and I turned them in to the Dean. I was… not popular after that. Ended up transferring schools.

Cassian frowned. “That’s terrible.”

“It’s alright.” Bodhi shrugged. “It gave me the opportunity to reinvent myself, not to mention coming out of the closet. Besides, I liked Alliance University better anyway.”

Cassian started. “Alliance University? That’s where I did my undergraduate degree! Of course, that would have been before your time.”

Bodhi nodded, then suddenly stilled as realisation dawned on him. “Cassian, you weren’t in the theatre troupe, were you?”

Cassian narrowed his eyes. “I was. Why do you ask?”

Bodhi’s eyes widened in awe. “Oh my God. You’re Cass the Ass.”

Cassian choked on his coffee. “Excuse me?”

“You were a legend.” Bodhi shook his head, unable believe that the sweet, if somewhat intense, man beside him was actually the infamous scourge of Alliance Uni. “You stayed in character from the day you were cast until final curtain. You even went to class in costume.”

“So?” Cassian furrowed his brow. “I took my roles seriously.”

“Your classmates _hated_ you. Your _professors_ hated you.”

“Professor Draven seemed to like me alright.”

“He may have been the only one. And I’ll bet he was less enamoured of you, once he realised not all the costumes made it back to the rack.”

“Hey, it gets cold in England. I’m from a warm country.”

“ _Seven_ jackets, though?”

Cassian shrugged. “I like to layer.”

“They say you stayed in character as The Fulcrum for a full semester.”

Cassian grinned. “That was a fun semester.”

“Not for your roommate, I’ll bet.”

“I didn’t have one. I scared three roommates away my first year, and after that, I just used the space to build robots.”

“And somehow, you’re still single?”

Cassian punched Bodhi playfully on the arm. “Alright, so I used to be a little weird. Anyhow, we’ve arrived.” He pulled the cord as they approached the entrance of a…

No. This was not happening.

“ _Used_ to be weird?” Bodhi’s eyebrows shot up. “Please tell me you’re not taking me on a romantic walk through the cemetery.”

 “Don’t worry. The park just happens to be right next to the cemetery. Although, I’m sure The Fulcrum would find the graveyard a perfectly natural spot for a picnic.”

Bodhi snorted, following Cassian past the graveyard. As they approached the entrance to the adjacent part, he stopped suddenly. He drew himself up, affronted. “Hold on, what’s this about a picnic? I thought you weren’t going to keep feeding me!”

“I said I wouldn’t bring _breakfast_ ,” Cassian reminded him matter-of-factly. “The picnic is for _lunch._ ”

“Cass the Ass,” Bodhi muttered, and followed him into the park.


End file.
